Introduction to Human-Computer Interaction (Part 1)

Two primary fields work to improve how we use technology:

1. Human-Computer Interaction (HCI): Understanding and improving the relationship between humans and computers.
2. Interaction Design (ID): Designing interactive systems that are usable, useful, and provide a positive user experience

HCI is an interdisciplinary field that ‘does’ interaction design.

Other definitions for interaction design are:

• Designing interactive products to support people in their everyday and working lives

• The design of spaces for human communication and interaction

Examples of interactive systems are:

• Consumer Electronics

• Public Terminal

• Digital Platforms

• Critical Systems

The goals of interaction design are

• Develop usable products

  • Usability means easy to learn or easy to use

• Provide an enjoyable experience

• Involves users in the design process

There are 3 pillars to interaction design

• User: Who is using the system? (Who)

• Activity: What is the user trying to accomplish? (What)

• Context: Where and under what conditions is the interaction taking place? (Where)

When designing, you need to take into account the three pillars. You also need to optimize the interactions users have with a product. Some techniques to understand the user needs are

• Observing users in real environments

• Conducting interviews and surveys

• Involving users in usability testing

• Applying established user-centered design methods

The following table demonstrates 3 examples of design flows:

Example of Design Flaws

Design Flaw	Human Impact	Technical Result
Activation Barrier	Increase Cognitive Load	Slower Transaction Times
Broken Convention	High Error Rate	User Frustration / Abandonment
Hidden Affordances	Conusion	Underutilization of Features

An important concept here is interfaces. An interface serves as a point of interaction between a user and a computer system. They include

• Input Mechanisms

• Output Mechanisms

• Interaction Styles